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Contact Usthat quickly supply security patches when a new CVE is reported, making sure your Ubuntu release 18.04 workloads are safe against new threats.
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Ubuntu 18.04
Endless Lifecycle Support
Standard support of Ubuntu version 18.04 has officially run out. You need to act fast, but – at the
same time – avoid rushing your migration.
Unlike the costly Ubuntu Pro subscription for extended security maintenance, TuxCare’s Endless Lifecycle Support gives you an affordable option to continue receiving as many additional years as you need of vendor-grade security patches so you can migrate safely at your own pace.
Pricing as low as $42.50 per year or $4.25 per month for each system
(guaranteed price lock for the term of your contract)
 TuxCare Endless Lifecycle Support |
 Canonical Ubuntu Pro |
|
|---|---|---|
| Security updates for packages in Ubuntu Main repository past the EOL date |
 |
Up to 5 years |
| Support for packages in Ubuntu Main repository |
24/7 break/fix ticket support1 | Available in higher tiers |
| Kernel live patching |  |
 |
| Pricing | $92 annually per server |
$225 and up / annually per server |
1 For a list of base packages
Ubuntu 18.04 received Ubuntu Standard Support from Canonical with security patches through June 2023.
Ignoring the fact that this distribution has stopped receiving security patches and not doing anything is the only option you don’t have. Since May 31, 2023, unsupported Ubuntu 18.04 versions are at far greater risk of a successful cyberattack.
To stay secure, you need to switch to Ubuntu 20.04 or 22.04 as soon as possible. Because the time to plan a migration before it reaches end of life has passed, you’ll need to sign up for a costly Ubuntu Pro subscription with extended security maintenance.
Fortunately, there’s a more affordable option with TuxCare’s Endless Lifecycle Support.
Don’t risk it.
Don’t risk it. Sign up for TuxCare’s Endless Lifecycle Support (ELS) to migrate to Ubuntu 20.04 on your
own schedule – without the risks involved in a rushed migration
What Do You Get with TuxCare’s ELS?
Fast delivery times
Zero tooling changes
because updates work just like they did before. You can continue to use the same tools and scripts that you already have in place, with TuxCare providing a new repository for your updates.
Top expertise
from a team that has spent more than a decade working with a range of Linux distributions, including Ubuntu.
Worry-free confidence
that you can use your Ubuntu 18.04 EOL machines without concerns of emerging cybersecurity threats, thanks to TuxCare’s rapid security updates.
Components covered by
TuxCare's ELS
TuxCare provides updates for the kernel, Apache, PHP, glibc,
OpenSSL, OpenSSH, and Python packages.
Packages updated includes →
- acpid
- glibc
- attr
- php
- info
- Iptstate
- gdb
- glib2
- bash
- basesystem
- authconfig
- zlib
- acl
- dovecot
- mysql
- ed
- gcc
- lslk
- blktrace
- bc
- openssh
- device-mapper
- dhclient
- dhcpv6
- dmidecode
- bzip2
- busybox
- bridge-utils
- httpd
- userspace
- packages
- crash
- cyrus-imapd
- cyrus-sasl
Every major end-of-life enterprise Linux
distribution is covered by TuxCare's ELS
TuxCare’s Endless Lifecycle Support is also available for other operating systems, including:
Extended Lifecycle Support for CentOS Stream 8
End of life: June 2024You can rely on Extended Lifecycle Support for CentOS Stream 8 to continue receiving security updates all the way through June 2028 – so that you have enough time to migrate to another Linux distribution securely.
Learn More
Endless Lifecycle Support
for Oracle Linux 7
End of life: December 2024
Give your team plenty of time to upgrade to Oracle Linux 8 or 9 with ELS for Oracle Linux 7, which continues to deliver security patches until December 2028 at a much more affordable cost than an Oracle Premier Support plan.
Learn More
Endless Lifecycle Support for CentOS 7
End of life: June 2024CentOS 7 is going end of life in June 2024, but you can enjoy ongoing security updates through June 2029 with our Extended Lifecycle Support – buying time to plan your migration, while keeping your workload safe.
Learn More
Endless Lifecycle Support for Python 2.x
End of life: January 2020Python Extended Lifecycle Service from TuxCare breathes new life into code written for Python 2.7 so you can continue using your existing software on AlmaLinux, Rocky, or Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 as before.
Learn More
Endless Lifecycle Support for Spring
End of life: Varies for Spring ProjectsWith ongoing end-of-life security updates for various Spring projects, including Spring Framework, Spring Boot, and more, TuxCare’s ELS for Spring enables you to ensure long-term security, compatibility, and compliance for your Spring applications.
Learn More
Extended Lifecycle Support for CentOS 6
End of life: December 2020TuxCare’s Extended Lifecycle Support gives you the same official security patches you used to get with CentOS 6, and we’ll continue to provide you with ongoing security support right through to November 2026.
Learn More
Extended Lifecycle Support for CentOS 8
End of life: December 2021All the way through January 2026, you can rely on TuxCare for Extended Lifecycle Support to cover security updates for your CentOS 8 Linux distribution – so that you have enough time to migrate to another distro.
Learn More
Extended Lifecycle Support for Oracle Linux 6
End of life: March 2021TuxCare will deliver Extended Lifecycle Support for Oracle Linux 6 until December 2024, saving you significantly on costs compared to Oracle Linux Premier Support while providing the same vulnerability coverage.
Learn More
Extended Lifecycle Support for PHP
End of life: Extended Lifecycle Support for PHPBuy yourself and your organization time to develop new production code while receiving ongoing security patches for out-of-support PHP versions with Extended Lifecycle Support to maintain the safety of your systems.
Learn More
Ubuntu 16.04 End of Life Extended Lifecycle Support
End of life: April 2021Save on costs compared to Ubuntu Pro for Ubuntu 16.04 when you choose TuxCare Extended Lifecycle Support for ongoing security maintenance, which will keep you protected for up to 4 years past the end-of-life date.
Learn MoreUnderstanding Ubuntu End
of Life (EOL)
An operating system (OS) reaches EOL when the software vendor no longer produces patches for updates and problems found in the OS – including security risks.
With Ubuntu, EOL happens in two stages: first, when free standard support ends, then five years after a long-term support (LTS) release is published. At that point, anyone relying on free support for Ubuntu will lose that service.
Only Ubuntu users paying for Ubuntu Pro, a relatively expensive and comprehensive support package, will continue to receive security updates for another five years – thanks to the included extended security maintenance, after which support under Ubuntu Pro also ends.
Ubuntu release 18.04 (Bionic Beaver) is now at the point in the Ubuntu release cycle where standard support has been suspended.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. That’s because in the Ubuntu release cycle every Ubuntu LTS release has a fixed support window that lasts for as long as you need.
In the case of Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, the free support window ended in June 2023 when Ubuntu users stopped receiving patches for critical security vulnerabilities – unless they chose to pay for Ubuntu Pro, which comes at a substantial cost. For many users, this essentially means Ubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver machines reached end of life in June 2023.
If you’re using Ubuntu 18.04, you need to upgrade to Ubuntu release 20.04 LTS or another distribution as soon as you can to receive security support. To keep your systems secure in the meantime, consider using TuxCare’s Endless Lifecycle Support for Ubuntu 18.04, which will give you the time you need to upgrade to Ubuntu 20.04.
After June 2023, any Ubuntu 18.04 machines not switched to a newer version of Ubuntu will lose free support from the Ubuntu team. Servers using Ubuntu 18.04 will continue to work, but the Linux kernel will be vulnerable to threats that emerge after 31 May 2023 because there are no ongoing security updates.
With no vendor security updates forthcoming after 31 May 2023, it’s critical that Ubuntu 18.04 users migrate – or find a partner to extend support until they’re ready to migrate.
Ubuntu Pro is one of the alternatives, but the price is relatively high, which is not ideal if all you need is patching. TuxCare offers Endless Lifecycle Support that is much more affordable than Ubuntu Pro.
Ubuntu 20.04 LTS released on April 23, 2020, which is called Focal Fossa, and still has several years of ongoing support left with free standard support security updates through April 2025. You have the option to pay for Ubuntu Pro extended security maintenance through 2030. However, in 2024, you should start planning for a migration for when the next LTS version is released, so that you’re not forced to migrate in a rush.
Ubuntu 18.04.1 LTS Bionic Beaver was released on April 26, 2018, in line with the usual Ubuntu release schedule. At release, Ubuntu’s standard support started and continued to receive security updates for Bionic Beaver right through June 2023.
The next LTS versions of Ubuntu, Ubuntu 20.04 Focal Fossa and Ubuntu 22.04 Jammy Jellyfish, were released on April 23, 2020 and April 21, 2022 respectively.
The Ubuntu release schedule dictates that Ubuntu releases a new long-term support (LTS) release every two years. For example, Bionic Beaver was preceded by Ubuntu 16.04 Xenial Xerus in 2016, and before that came Ubuntu 14.04 Trusty Tahr, which was released in 2014.
There are also regular Ubuntu interim releases, but these don’t enjoy the full five years of free support given to LTS versions. Only the LTS versions in the release cycle, such as Bionic Beaver, Focal Fossa, and Jammy Jellyfish, get Ubuntu’s standard support – while interim releases only enjoy nine months of support.
For example, while Ubuntu 21.10 (Impish Indri), Ubuntu 21.04 (Hirsute Hippo), and Ubuntu 20.10 (Groovy Gorilla) are all production-quality releases, the fact that they’re interim releases and only include a limited support window means that Impish Indri, Hirsute Hippo, and Groovy Gorilla are not fit for enterprise use.
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